1. Curt Schilling - He's solid, as always. He was 15-7 last year with a 3.97. sh*t he started out 4-0 last season, then went to 10-2. He just lost a little at the end of the year. Not to mention he lost his catcher in August and thats when most of his losses came in. He may be 40, but he still can pitch and I expect him to win at least 15 games this year. This free agent bullsh*t he is doing is fu*ked up. He needs to leave that alone right now.

2. Josh Beckett - The kid was k!lling it in the beginning of the year. Then he just started giving up way too many HRs and he lost some of his confidence because of it. And it was also his first year in the AL. He still managed to go 16-11 and if Veritek didn't go down I think he wouldn't have lost as many. Most of his losses came after Tek was gone for the year. Not to mention he's only 26 and has great veterans to learn from.

3. Daisuke Matsuzaka - We all know the story about Japanese pitchers. Almost none of them have lived up to their potential. But also none of them have been as good as Dice K coming out of Japan. The fu*king guy has 7 different pitches that he can throw at you, 7. Everyone is saying he has to face all these big hitters. I guess no one remembers the World Baseball Classic where he went 3-0 against some of the best. I think he is going to have a great career.

4. Jonathan Papelbon - I know relief pitching is totally different than starting pitching. But the pressure definitely is a lot worse in relief pitching because the game is in your hands and sometimes you're one pitch away from winning or losing. He proved he can handle the pressure. The main issue he will have is throwing that many innings and his shoulder. I think he will be just fine.

5. Tim Wakefield - He's 40 and probably should have retired. I like Wakefield, but his ERA hasn't been below 4 the last 4 years. The knuckle ball is such a complicated pitch. Batters hate it. But with Wakefield if its on, its on. If its off its way fu*king off and he gets k!lled. I don't think he should be in the 5 spot. Last year was a bad year for him because he was hurt. I'm hoping for at least 10-15 wins out of him.

Some people think the Sox are making a mistake not extending Schill before the season. I'm completely in agreement with the Sox. He is over 40, so it's a good idea to make sure he doesn't fall off this year and then they're stuck with a big contract for a declining pitcher next year

"It wasn't something he just dropped on us today," said Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein. "That bullpen today was a product of a lot of discourse and part of his very well thought-out, structured routine. It was impressive. Probably the thing that caught my attention the most is that he's in there 80, 90 pitches deep, he's still going through the stretch, he's still checking runners, he's still taking it like a real game situation. Every single pitch had a purpose."

To Matsuzaka, such a lengthy side session is commonplace.

"It was nothing out of the ordinary for me," said Matsuzaka. "I didn't speed up the pace of how I pitched either. I was trying to stick to what I'm used to in Japan and how I'm getting trained for the workout schedule here. I pitched more today, longer today, but nothing out of the ordinary."

It was Matsuzaka's third side session of camp and his final tune-up before he faces hitters in a live batting practice session on Saturday.

From his general manager to his manager to his pitching coach to his catcher, everyone seems impressed with the way Matsuzaka is going about his work.

"I think what continues to emerge is just the way he goes about his work and the precision," said Sox pitching coach John Farrell. "If there's a word to surmise his approach to his work, it's 'a precise manner.'"

Varitek is clearly enjoying the process of getting to know Matsuzaka.

"He has a great feel for all of his pitches," said Varitek. "He stays mechanically sound and has the ability to control the ball to both sides of the plate and add some giddy-up, too. He can put a little extra on it from what I've seen, too. He can gear down and gear back up. I think that's what makes him special, from so far what I've seen, than just raw stuff."

To those who watched, Matsuzaka's side session was almost a clinic.

"You almost wanted to videotape it and show it to our young guys in Minor League camp about how to get the most out of your practice," said Epstein.

Ian Browne is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Matsuzaka vs. Big Papi? Daisuke Matsuzaka is scheduled to throw his second round of batting practice Monday, and his competition might be far more intriguing this time around. After facing four Minor Leaguers on Saturday, there's a chance Matsuzaka will face off against the hitting group that includes David Ortiz, Wily Mo Pena and Julio Lugo.

Matsuzaka is scheduled to pitch on Field 5, which is where Ortiz's group has been doing its work.

Matsuzaka vs. Big Papi? Daisuke Matsuzaka is scheduled to throw his second round of batting practice Monday, and his competition might be far more intriguing this time around. After facing four Minor Leaguers on Saturday, there's a chance Matsuzaka will face off against the hitting group that includes David Ortiz, Wily Mo Pena and Julio Lugo.

Matsuzaka is scheduled to pitch on Field 5, which is where Ortiz's group has been doing its work.

You going to any of the games in Dunedin? I think I might go to the one this Thursday.

Willy Mo = The Next Manny. His swing is incredible. He just needs to learn better patience. Ron Jackson would have been great for this.
If Dice K can get it past those 3 that would be very very good.

I'm gonna try to get to St. Pete if/when they play the D Rays down there. I went with Addison last year, and we were front row down the 3rd baseline talkin to Bill Hasselman and all the players that at some point or another made their way towards 3rd base. If they play at all in Fort Myers if I go home this month, I'll probably try to catch a game down there too

i saw the game and i was highly impress as to how well matsuzaka and tek got along..everything flow, and he looked sharp..although, i noticed that in his delivery, when hes about to throw his fastball, at the end he drops his leg faster compare as to him throwing a breaking ball..so hopefully tek can discover that and help him being consistent in his delivery..but overall, im very impress.

Dice K's gonna get his first action against a Major League team tomorrow against the Marlins:

Matsuzaka ready for seconds: Fresh off his strong outing against Boston College, Daisuke Matsuzaka is set to face the Marlins on Tuesday in Jupiter in his first appearance against a Major League team.

Matsuzaka allowed one hit and no runs over his two-inning stint against BC, notching three strikeouts. In that start, Matsuzaka didn't get a true gauge of the Major League strike zone because college umpires handled the game.

"What I would really want to see is how the batters would react and also want to make sure what the strike zone in the U.S. is all about," said Matsuzaka. "I will be able to so [Tuesday] for the first time."

With nearly 100 media members expected to be on hand, the Marlins have set up an auxiliary press area in the outfield.